Ronni Ancona felt 'nervous' about meeting EastEnders cast she impersonated
Ronni Ancona - who is joining EastEnders as Bea, Linda Carter's old school pal - was "nervous" about meeting the BBC soap's cast members she impersonated on the Big Impression show.
EastEnders' Ronni Ancona felt "a bit nervous" about meeting the cast she impersonated when she joined the programme.
The 57-year-old comedienne famously performed impressions of the BBC soap's characters, including Kat Slater (Jessie Wallace) and Peggy Mitchell (the late Dame Barbara Windsor), with 61-year-old comic Alistair McGowan on the Big Impression show.
And because of that, Ronni - who viewers will see as Linda Carter's (Kellie Bright's) "Walter Mitty–type" old school pal Bea from January 5 - admitted it felt "bizarre" stepping onto Albert Square.
Ronni said: "It all felt rather bizarre and completely surreal.
"Over the years, Alistair and I had filmed so many sketches deconstructing the very premise of EastEnders - from our spoof mash-up of The Truman Show and EastEnders, where the characters had no idea they were in a soap, to the 'intellectual' version set in The Queen Vic, with everyone arguing passionately about early 19th-century Russian literature.
"We always made those sketches with real respect and affection for the show and its cast, so stepping onto the actual set for the first time was an especially strange experience.
"Although thinking about it, I think they let us film our EastEnders the Musical on the outside lot, which would have been the old set."
The actress said joining EastEnders as a cast member felt like a full-circle experience because of her past connection with the soap, through the Big Impression show.
Ronni continued: "My first scene was on the bench in the middle of Albert Square - exactly where Alistair and I had once filmed our sketch The Bench of Tears.
"That moment was so surreal I immediately phoned him to say, 'I’ve just done a scene on the bench of tears,' and he practically shouted, 'NO WAY!'
"To add to the oddness, several members of the crew had worked with me years ago on Big Impression and The Sketch Show with Lee Mack, so it felt like past and present were colliding."
Ronni could not help but get emotional when she filmed scenes as the "tragic and funny" Bea - who makes her debut at a school reunion where she and Linda reunite for the first time in years - inside EastEnders' iconic Queen Victoria pub.
The impressionist - whose alter ego is "misunderstood, and there’s a touch of desperation about her" - said: "Filming in the Vic for the first time was unexpectedly emotional.
"I couldn’t help remembering my impression of Peggy Mitchell - played by the much-missed Barbara Windsor - using our very sophisticated early-noughties special effects, which mostly involved me shuffling around on my knees in padded knee guards because Barbara was so much shorter than I am.
"I adored her, and I know she enjoyed the impression, so walking into her domain properly was a real moment."
And Ronni - whose character Bea "can become rather dangerous" but, ultimately, "wants to be loved and to fit in" - was surprised when Jessie Wallace, 54, did the comedienne's Kat Slater impression back at her.
Ronni said: "I’ll admit I was a bit nervous about meeting some of the cast I’d impersonated, but they all have a brilliant sense of humour.
"Jessie Wallace even did my impression of her back at me, which was hysterical. I may now have to do my impression of her impression - it could become an endless loop."
